Prioritizing Animal Welfare in Shelter Design
Animal Welfare Week, October 3 – 9th, is an annual week that aims to prevent animal cruelty and promote animal welfare on a global level. Throughout the week, organizations dedicated to the welfare of animals will organize community outreach events, fundraise, and educate the public on the importance of humane animal treatment and animal welfare.
As a design firm that has completed a number of animal care facilities, the humane treatment of animals is of the utmost importance to COAR. In honor of Animal Welfare week, we are sharing some of the guiding principles that our team employs when designing these facilities.
1. Specialized Habitats
When designing animal care facilities, COAR designers work closely with staff to develop unique habitats for any kind of animal that could come through the doors.
At the newly renovated San Diego Humane Society (SDHS) Adoptions Center, each type of animal was considered when designing new habitats. Dog kennels are oriented in a sawtooth configuration to provide privacy, reduced sightlines between dogs, and overall calmer conditions. Flexible small animal habitats allow the humane society to adapt to care for an ever-changing population of animals ranging from rabbits and guinea pigs to snakes and lizards. This meant creating spaces that could adjust to the necessary temperature, lighting, and size requirements for a wide range of species. Updated cat habitats allow more space for cats to play, rest, and explore the outdoors on the cat-io while maximizing meaningful interactions between adoptable cats and potential adopters.
These bespoke habitats are centered around creating the best experience for every animal with the goal of reducing an animal’s overall length of stay at the animal shelter.
2. Safe & Healing Environments
Reduced sightlines, improved sound insulation, proper floor drainage, and bolstered air quality and diffusion create a more peaceful environment, allowing animals to heal and relax in what could otherwise be a stressful experience. By limiting the transfer of sight, smell, and sound, strategic design can create a more tranquil environment, allowing animals respite and the improved ability to connect with potential adopters.
3. Empowering Animal Services Operations
It’s important to work closely with staff to create spaces that operate as efficiently as possible. Upgrades to plumbing and drainage paired with durable materials that can stand up to rigorous cleaning foster a healthy and safe environment for animals and staff. By tailoring work environments, materials, and finishes to be lasting, easy to clean and functional for daily use, staff can operate at the highest level when caring for animals.
4. Warm & Welcoming Atmosphere
Warm and welcoming spaces defy the tradition of animal shelters feeling dark and depressing. At the San Diego Humane Society, the Shadow & Zephyr Cat Aquarium in the lobby features colorful fish and seaweed decorations throughout the space creating a fun, eye-catching environment for potential adopters to interact with cats in a unique, cheerful setting. Incorporating these bright colors paired with natural light from windows and skylights, animal care facilities can evoke a home-like environment for animals, staff, and visitors, and work to increase connections between animals and adopters.
5. Prioritize Opportunities for Socialization
Creating opportunities for socialization is crucial in forming connections between animals and potential adopters. Defining intentional spaces for socialization such as interaction rooms, cat condos, dog agility yards, and communal cat rooms allows healthy animals to be viewable to the public and increases opportunities for exercise and play.
6. Space for Spay/Neuter Clinics and Hospitals
When designing animal shelters, we look for opportunities to incorporate spaces that facilitate a healthier and safer animal population. This could include creating designated spaces for large -scale spay/neuter or microchip programs, establishing specialized animal hospitals, or designing clinic spaces that can also be utilized to support wildlife rehabilitation. These spaces give animal care organizations the space to work towards a healthier and safer animal population and can support educational efforts for a more prepared pet-owning public.
7. Behavior Centers Create a Safe Space for Fearful and Reactive Animals
Creating a comfortable space for fearful and reactive animals can be challenging in a typical shelter environment, which is where a Behavior Center can help. The San Diego Humane Society is home to one of only a handful throughout the country and the only one with the capacity to serve hundreds of animals each year. It provides a uniquely designed space that removes the noise, unpredictability, and other barriers to rehabilitation found in a traditional shelter and replaces them with an environment that supports the intensive work these animals require.
Learn more.
At COAR Design Group, we believe in the humane treatment of animals and make it our mission to help the animal care organizations and facilities we work with to realize their goals. Visit our Animal Care Page to learn more!